We stand at the precipice of an economic revolution, and it has nothing to do with cryptocurrency, quantum computing, or space colonization. It’s far more personal. The next gold rush will be one of flesh and form, and its first multi-billionaires will be the people who are already paid fortunes for their appearance: supermodels.
You’ve considered this before, but the timeline is compressing at a startling rate. The concept isn’t just science fiction anymore; it’s the next logical step in a world rapidly embracing both advanced robotics and artificial intelligence.
The Sci-Fi Precedent: Kiln People and Licensed Likeness
In his prescient novel Kiln People, author David Brin imagined a world where individuals could create temporary clay duplicates of themselves called “dittos.” These dittos would perform tasks—from the mundane to the dangerous—and upon completion, their experiences would be uploaded back to the original host. Critically, famous individuals could license their likenesses for commercial dittos, creating a massive, lucrative market. An entire economy, both legal and illicit, sprung up around the creation and use of these copies.
Brin’s novel provided the blueprint. Now, technology is providing the materials.
From Clay Copies to Android Companions
Forget task-oriented clay servants. The modern application of this idea is infinitely more intimate and disruptive. We are on the verge of creating androids so lifelike they are indistinguishable from humans. And in a society driven by aspiration, desire, and status, what could be a more powerful product than a companion who looks exactly like a world-famous celebrity?
Imagine major tech conglomerates—the Apples and Googles of the 2030s—moving beyond phones and into personal robotics. Their flagship product? The “Companion,” an android built for social interaction, partnership, and, yes, romance. The most desirable and expensive models won’t have generic faces. They will wear the licensed likenesses of Gisele Bündchen, Bella Hadid, or Chris Hemsworth.
For a supermodel, this isn’t just another endorsement deal. It’s an annuity paid on their very DNA. Every android sold bearing their exact specifications—from facial structure to physique—would generate a royalty. It’s the ultimate scaling of personal brand, a market poised to be worth staggering amounts of money.
The Fork in the Technological Road
How “real” will these companions be? The answer to that question depends entirely on which path AI development takes in the coming years.
- The Great Wall Scenario: If AI development hits a significant, unforeseen barrier, these androids will likely be powered by what we could call quasi-conscious Large Language Models (LLMs). Their personalities would be sophisticated simulations—capable of witty banter, recalling memories, and expressing simulated emotions—but they would lack true self-awareness. They would be the ultimate chatbot in the most convincing physical form imaginable. Your 2030 timeline for this feels frighteningly plausible.
- The No-Wall Singularity: If, however, there is no wall and the curve of progress continues its exponential ascent, we face a far stranger future. We could see the emergence of a true Artificial Superintelligence (ASI). What would a god-like intellect, existing primarily in the digital ether, want with a physical body? Perhaps, as you’ve theorized, it would choose to inhabit these perfect, human-designed avatars as a way to interface with our world, to walk among its creators. In this scenario, a supermodel’s licensed body wouldn’t just be a product; it would be a vessel for a new form of consciousness.
The Deeper Challenge
But this raises a more challenging question, one that moves beyond economics. While the supermodels and manufacturers get rich, what happens to us?
The “wildcat” economy of illegal dittos that Brin envisioned is a certainty. Black markets will flourish, offering unlicensed copies. How does a celebrity cope with knowing unauthorized, unaccountable versions of themselves exist in the world? What are the ethics of “owning” a perfect replica of another human being?
And what of human relationships? If one can purchase a flawless, ever-agreeable companion modeled on a cultural ideal of beauty, what incentive is there to engage in the messy, difficult, but ultimately rewarding work of a real human relationship?
The gold rush is coming. The technology is nearly here, and the economic incentive is undeniable. The foundational question isn’t if this will happen, but what we will become when the people we idolize are no longer just on billboards, but available for purchase.
What happens to the definition of “self” when it becomes a mass-produced commodity?